Draft Trainer

Core Set 2021 Limited Quiz

Answered: 0/20
Accuracy: 0
Frantic Inventory
Average Picked At: 10.63
Total Times Picked: 8
Average Last Seen At: 7.80
Total Times Seen 78
Pro Rating: 0.5 // 3.0
Pro Comment: I actually enjoy these “Collect ‘em All” type cards in Limited, as they make for interesting decisions even later on in packs. Obviously, you don’t want to play this if you only have 1, it is woefully inefficient -- and even 2 isn’t really where you should be playing it. I think you need to get at least 3 before you start playing it, and any more than that and it becomes increasingly impressive. It doesn’t hurt that UG has payoffs for drawing cards, and UR has payoffs for spells either. Keep in mind, by the way -- in Limited you can play as many copies of something as you can get your hands on, so you can go higher than 4.
Valorous Steed
Average Picked At: 7.29
Total Times Picked: 7
Average Last Seen At: 5.91
Total Times Seen 77
Pro Rating: 3.0
Pro Comment: This is a nice Common. 5-mana for 5/5 worth of Vigilance stats across two bodies is a nice deal, especially in a format with some nice go-wide payoffs. You probably don’t want more than two of these since they cost 5, but it will do some nice work for you in any deck.
Jeskai Elder
Average Picked At: 5.50
Total Times Picked: 4
Average Last Seen At: 5.23
Total Times Seen 35
Pro Rating: 2.5
Pro Comment: A two mana ½ with Prowess isn’t the most amazing -- we have seen a few different two mana 1/3s with Prowess in the past -- but the damage trigger here letting you loot is pretty nice. That said, a ½ can’t really threaten a whole lot of creatures as an attacker, even with Prowess, and the elder will rapidly become irrelevant on many board states, because it just isn’t big enough. It is pretty nice on turn two, but after that it isn’t all that impressive.
Elder Gargaroth
Average Picked At: 1.00
Total Times Picked: 2
Average Last Seen At: 1.00
Total Times Seen 3
Pro Rating: 5.0
Pro Comment: A 5-mana 6/6 with those three keywords is great, and there’s way more than that here! Most often, you’ll probably find yourself making a Beast token or drawing a card. The Beast token option is great, because it allows you to add to the board in a very tangible way That option makes it so you can be pretty aggressive on many board states, since it provides you with an extra blocker. Drawing a card is something worth doing if you already have a nice board presence, and gaining life is something you’ll do when you’ll be dead when you don’t do it. The fact it gives you an option between these three things are great, and the fact that it has Vigilance and Reach means that it will often be doing these things when your opponent attacks too, since you’ll generally be able to block their stuff. Now, while the Gargaroth does a great job of giving you value if you go to combat, he is vulnerable to removal spells, since he doesn’t make sure you get something out of the deal in that situation, but still. His size means there isn’t a plethora of removal that can deal with him at lower rarities, and really pointing out that he “dies to removal” and doesn’t give you any value back is pretty nitpicky. I still think the whole package here is enough to be a bomb.
Teferi's Ageless Insight
Average Picked At: 4.00
Total Times Picked: 1
Average Last Seen At: 3.43
Total Times Seen 7
Pro Rating: 2.0
Pro Comment: This is a win more card, and it doesn’t directly impact the board in any real way, and that always sends up a red flag for me. Now, there is a decent amount of looting and card draw in this set, and the Insight is definitely a payoff for a UR deck that is going to be about drawing extra cards, and there are some very real payoffs for that (including another card with “Teferi” in its name we will see momentarily), but even with that as a supported archetype, it is far from a foregone conclusion that Teferi’s Ageless Insight will be worth running in all of your Blue decks, or even all of your UR decks. That said, if you can turn this into the engine that it has the potential to be, it is going to feel pretty awesome. It probably needs to net you 3 cards before you feel great about the situation.
Liliana's Devotee
Average Picked At: 6.00
Total Times Picked: 1
Average Last Seen At: 2.92
Total Times Seen 13
Pro Rating: 3.0
Pro Comment: So, there are enough Zombies in this set that a 3-mana ⅔ that gives +1/+0 to all Zombies is probably worth playing already, but I think what makes this card extra good is the ability to make a Zombie token at the end of your turn if a creature died that turn. Obviously, it will be a 3/2 Zombie as long as the Devotee is around. Paying two mana just won’t be possible sometimes, but it is the kind of thing that can really torment your opponent late, since you will be able to attack aggressively into their trades, and then get a Zombie at the end of your turn. I think the reasonable floor here, coupled with a fairly powerful ability, makes Devotee a card that I want to be taking with a first pick sometimes.
Solemn Simulacrum
Pro Rating: 3.5
Pro Comment: The Simulacrum is usually going to get you a 3-for-1, and that’s pretty great. He gets you a land -- which both fixes and ramps you -- and he draws a card when he dies. Provided you can trade him for something, you’re going to feel pretty great. I also love colorless fixing in Limited, and this is an excellent example of that. He isn’t going to win you the game outright or anything, but the value Solemn Simulacrum can give you is amazing.
Scorching Dragonfire
Average Picked At: 3.53
Total Times Picked: 19
Average Last Seen At: 3.23
Total Times Seen 36
Pro Rating: 3.5
Pro Comment: This is really efficient removal, and the exile clause is nice. This is definitely premium.
Teferi's Protege
Average Picked At: 10.69
Total Times Picked: 13
Average Last Seen At: 7.89
Total Times Seen 115
Pro Rating: 2.5
Pro Comment: Looting is nice because it helps you get through your library and gives you nice card selection. This looter also comes with reasonable stats for the investment as a ⅔. It is somewhat limited as a looter since it asks for two mana every time you do it, but that’s ok -- it is a good place to be spending your mana as the game goes long, and it will definitely have a positive impact on the outcome of long games. This is a solid Blue common.
Shipwreck Dowser
Average Picked At: 7.00
Total Times Picked: 2
Average Last Seen At: 3.56
Total Times Seen 17
Pro Rating: 3.5
Pro Comment: A 5-mana 3/3 that returns an instant or sorcery to your hand is already a pretty good card -- it can help you get back a powerful removal spell while also having a large enough body to trade with something -- and that’s a 2-for-1.. Adding Prowess to the mix makes it even more appealing, since it can become a 4/4 pretty easily, and usually at Instant speed. Now, there is a downside here -- if your deck doesn’t have a decent number of spells, and you are just playing this as a 5-mana 3/3 that’s not going to feel too good. However, I don’t think it is a stretch to say most decks will have 4 or 5 instants or soceries, and if that’s the case you’re looking at a pretty good card.
Lorescale Coatl
Average Picked At: 5.50
Total Times Picked: 4
Average Last Seen At: 4.69
Total Times Seen 21
Pro Rating: 3.0
Pro Comment: I always like this card when it gets printed! A 3-mana 2/2 that grows progressively larger as the game goes on is nice, especially because you don’t have to contribute any resources to it getting larger. The Coatl gets better the more card draw you have, but even just a +1/+1 counter every turn is pretty nice. Now, the Coatl is pretty inefficient initially, and there will definitely be times where you play this and your opponent can kill it for 1-2 mana, and that’s going to be pretty rough.
Life Goes On
Average Picked At: 11.38
Total Times Picked: 13
Average Last Seen At: 9.09
Total Times Seen 117
Pro Rating: 0.5
Pro Comment: This gains you a bunch of life and that’s all. That’s not something you usually play in Limited. Maybe if you are GW and have some of the White life gain payoffs it can make it, but that won’t happen often.
Wall of Runes
Average Picked At: 13.22
Total Times Picked: 9
Average Last Seen At: 8.71
Total Times Seen 100
Pro Rating: 1.0
Pro Comment: This is a decent inclusion if you’re really defensive, but even there it isn’t great.
Battle-Rattle Shaman
Average Picked At: 6.57
Total Times Picked: 7
Average Last Seen At: 6.06
Total Times Seen 27
Pro Rating: 2.5
Pro Comment: This type of effect is easy to underrate, I think -- but don’t make that mistake! +2/+0 to a creature every combat makes creatures able to attack that could not have attacked before! This is especially spicy with creature tokens, who are pretty expendable, but turning them into 3/1s makes them into more of a problem for your opponent. Note by the way, in a pinch, the Shaman can also target himself, making the fail case of the card less miserable than it would have been otherwise. I’m not saying I think you should take this super early or anything -- after all, the creature has a pretty weak body for 4 mana, even if it can be a 4/2 on your turn -- but it is a serviceable card for Red decks that will really help them find ways to send in attackers in a way they couldn’t before.
Onakke Ogre
Average Picked At: 11.40
Total Times Picked: 10
Average Last Seen At: 7.98
Total Times Seen 93
Pro Rating: 1.5
Pro Comment: 3-mana 4/2s are borderline playables, and this set has various payoffs for 4 power, so you’ll play this a little more than you might think.
Conclave Mentor
Average Picked At: 6.00
Total Times Picked: 2
Average Last Seen At: 3.60
Total Times Seen 17
Pro Rating: 3.5
Pro Comment: So, this is the signpost uncommon for GW, which is all about +1/+1 counters! This will make all of those cards better. It doesn’t hurt that it can gain you a little life when it dies too, and if you have been putting the counters on it, there’s a good chance it will be a substantial amount of life.
Volcanic Geyser
Average Picked At: 3.67
Total Times Picked: 6
Average Last Seen At: 3.30
Total Times Seen 22
Pro Rating: 3.0
Pro Comment: So, this is never going to efficiently do damage – it just can’t how it is costed. However, it makes up for some of that with its flexibility. It scales as the game goes on and can even go for the opponents’ dome, and it does it all at Instant speed.
Skyway Sniper
Average Picked At: 9.75
Total Times Picked: 4
Average Last Seen At: 6.16
Total Times Seen 26
Pro Rating: 1.0
Pro Comment: This can pick off small flyers which is nice, but that doesn’t happen as often as you’d think in this format.
Wildwood Scourge
Average Picked At: 3.25
Total Times Picked: 4
Average Last Seen At: 3.45
Total Times Seen 13
Pro Rating: 3.5
Pro Comment: This is a great pay-off for the +1/+1 counter deck, and it can get really huge in a hurry. It is also nice that it just scales all game long, making it something that can fit pretty much anywhere on your curve.
Obsessive Stitcher
Average Picked At: 8.20
Total Times Picked: 5
Average Last Seen At: 5.64
Total Times Seen 36
Pro Rating: 4.0
Pro Comment: Looting is always really good in Limited, especially when its free. It just allows you to drastically improve your card quality, and over the course of the game it can really play a role in who wins and who doesn’t. Then, the fact this comes with a reasonably costed reanimation effect is nice too -- and you can do it at instant speed! Obviously because she’s a creature, you aren’t going ot be surprising anyone when you reanimate something, but the fact that you can do it at the end of the turn and attack with your reanimated creature is great. Basically, the Sticher lets you dig through your library for your past cards, and when necessary can give herself up to give you another chance with one of your best creatures -- that’s powerful. She is just really well-positioned in this format, where she is a key part of Teferi’s Tutleage decks as well as reanimator decks.
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